Low Density Poly Ethylene (LDPE) is produced in an autoclave and/or tubular reactors at high pressure and temperature. High pressure, free-radical polymerizations are disclosed in the following references: U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,445,606, 4,135,044, 7,582,709, and JP050534422 (Abstract). LDPE products with different properties, for example different levels of long chain branching, different molecular weight distributions, and different densities, can be produced by applying different reactor configurations, such as multiple ethylene-based feed flow injections, and multiple reaction zones. Extrusion coating resins typically require high levels of long chain branching and broad molecular weight distribution (MWD), and such resins are typically polymerized using high peak or control temperatures. On the other hand, narrow MWD resins (having low level of long chain branching), required for film applications, are typically polymerized at lower temperatures. Operating at high or low peak temperatures will strongly affect the conversion level and the polymer output of tubular LDPE plants. Typically, broad MWD resins are polymerized at lower costs, while narrow MWD resins are polymerized at higher costs.
There is a need for new polymerization processes that can be used to prepare ethylene-based polymers that have constant and/or high Long Chain Branching (LCB) levels, yet MWD varying from narrow to broader levels. There is a further need for such processes that result in high conversion levels. These needs have been met by the following invention.